John Wesley Addresses the Clergy: Highlights pt. 1

My brother and I were talking about and reading parts of John Wesley's "Address to the Clergy" the other day, so I thought I might go back and re-read the whole thing. When I first started seminary at SMU, I decided to read this Address to help set some direction for what I was doing in such a place. Now that I've finished and been sent by the bishop to be a pastor, it is well worth the re-read.

The address was originally given to all of John's fellow Anglican clergy in the Church of England, though as he says, he is just as happy to address "any, of whatsoever denomination, whom God has called to watch over the souls of others, as they that must give account." (Works of Wesley [or, WW], 3rd edition, published by Baker, vol. x, p.481).

One important thing for a clergyman (whether "he" [as it is styled in classic English] be male or female in our context) to posses is a quick mind, "Or, how will he be able, when need requires, to answer a fool according to his folly? How frequent is the need!"(WW, x, 482). This I thought was funny at first, but I wonder how well we do this today (if we attempt it at all)?

He must have a thorough and complete knowledge of the Scripture: "of all the Scriptures; seeing scripture interprets scripture; one part fixing the sense of another. So that whether it be true or not, that every good textuary is a good Divine (i.e. everyone who has knowledge of scripture is a good theologian), it is certain that none can be a good Divine who is not a good textuary." (WW, x, 482). And how far short are we Christians and "mainliners" in particular here? Not only the fundamentalists, but also the rabbis and Islamic Imams put us to shame in their sheer knowledge of the sacred texts next to our relative ignorance.

"But can he do this, in the most effectual manner, without a knowledge of the original tounges?" (WW, x, 483). The implied answer: No. Ironically and sadly, unlike Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Lutherans, and Baptists - the Methodist ministers are not required to take any biblical language classes to get an MDiv (though many of us did).

He goes on to say that a minister must have some knowledge of logic, philosophy, and geometry, in order to learn to think and speak in a coherent and connected fashion. As people who believe in Scripture, Tradition, REASON, and experience, it is truly a deficiency that no basic course in logical reasoning was required to graduate our seminaries (though, those who had taken such courses had an edge in the curriculum). But the curriculum is already quite full.

He goes on: "Can any [who have a university education for ministry] be excused if they do not add to all that...the knowledge of the Fathers? the most authentic commentators on Scripture, as being both nearest the fountain, and eminently endued with that Spirit by whom all Scripture was given. It will be easily percieved that I speak cheifly of those who wrote before the Council of Nicea. But who would not likewise desire to have some aquaintance with those that followed them: with St. Chrysostom, Basil, Jerome, Augustine, and, above all...Ephraim Syrus?" (WW, x, 484). Here is a theme that I have been emphasizing pretty consistently over the last couple years (see especially here), and here we see Wesley's own catholicity and continuity with major Anglican Divines: the Early Church Fathers are the most helpful and recognizably authoritative interpreters of Scripture for the Church of Christ. I am excited to have recently unpacked my 38 volume set of the Fathers' works.

There are lots of resources available to get to know the Fathers, and happily, more are becoming available all the time. In addition to the big sets of collected works, there are daily and weekly devotion readers available now for getting to know them in more manageable doses, and Tom Oden's extremely ambitious Ancient Christian Commentary on the Scripture for a more direct commenatry. So this is a huge part of Wesley's call to all ministers: like St. Augustine before you, 'take and read' - read the Bible and read the Fathers, that you may know the will of God, and lead others to it. This is a good stopping place for now.